I cannot believe this! I have had my *secured* Providian Visa Gold card for 5 billing cycles now and I just checked my account on line and they raised the limit from $300 to $400! I guess I should be happy since I did not have to pay for this increase but, DANG! I have made extra sure that this account is in excellent standing (along w/ my other cards). I always pay WAY before the due date and I always pay WAY more than the minimum but I generally carry some sort of balance just so they can make some money! I've even paid the account off once. I don't understand? What should I do? Should I call and see why? Should I just relax and do nothing? I guess I'm starting to get a little frustrated with this whole credit rebuilding thing. I've had a minor set back. Capital One has my secured account all screwed up. Long story short, I never received a card and they are supposedly returning my $200 because I *allegedly* called and canceled my account shortly after they received my deposit before they issued an account. I did not cancel my account! I inquired about canceling the account and upgrading to non secured status down the road in the future....that's it! So I've been calling them trying to get this all figured out and have gotten the run around! So, I guess my $200 is on it's way back. I'm going to call here in a minute and verify that. Maybe I should inquire about the Wells Fargo Financial Secured card? Maybe that might be a better solution. Maybe a means to an end is to just stick with 5 cards (Am/Ex Gold, Citibank, Chevron CB, Macy's, Bloomingdale's) and just leave everything else alone for now (ie get my money back and close Am/Ex Secured Optima and Assiciates and just pay off and not use Providian)????? Is there REALLY a way to rebuild w/o having a wallet full of B.S. cards? Well, I'm going to wait 30 days for the results of my dispute of a judgment w/ 2 CRA's before I make another move I guess. I think that if the judgment comes off, that I'll be in a WAY better position credit wise (obviously). This sucks! :-(
RE: Providian/Cap1 Slap In The I guess my question is this? If you have an Amex Gold, Citibank, Chevron CB, Macy's and Bloomingdale's card (did I read that correctly?), then why do you need a Providian and Cap One secured? If you are trying to rebuild your credit, use those accounts you have now responsibly and hold off on getting other accounts. Having too many accounts and too many accounts opened in a short amount of time makes creditors nervous. You probably between those five cards a fair amount of credit. As far as the low Providian increase, I think maybe a little perspective is in order. Five months of perfect credit history isn't that long in the credit world. It also isn't that unusual in the world of sub-prime credit. I'm not saying that you fit this profile, but there are a number of people who get a sub-prime card with the view towards improving their credit. They're really enthusiastic about the process. They pay over the minimum; they pay before the due date; they never go over the limit. And they do this for several months. The timeline for late pays, over limits, etc. on sub-prime accounts is rarely in the first 6 months. It's usually in months 7-12. The true indicator of someone changing their credit life is a full year of consistent, responsible behavior. It takes time to rebuild credit. It's never done quickly.
RE: Providian/Cap1 Slap In The What I have noticed with Providian is that you will get a small increase and then a letter will follow with another increase for a fee. When I get the letter I call and ask if I am eligible for an increase. I will get transferred to a supervisor who offers me the amount that is in the letter and I have to pay no fee. You can call Providian and see if this works for you. I also reccommend the Wells Fargo, but like curiouser and curiouser said do you need these cards now?
Why I have Providian... Let me clarify a little.... Before my credit went to hell, I had Citibank Visa, Macy's, Bloomingdale's, Target, Wards, First USA Plat, Ultramar gas card, and 2 auto loans. Then some collection accounts got added to my account (checks that I didn't write and old cell phone bill). Then I got into financial trouble and had defaulted student loans that I hadn't even started paying on yet. Then my ex defaulted on a car loan that I co-signed on so I had a judgment for $1200 added. Then (due to my lack of credit knowledge) let Target and Wards charge off, I closed the gas card w/ zero balance, I tried to dispute some stuff on my First USA account and got mad at the rep and closed it w/ a balace. I was left w/ Citibank, Macy's, Bloomingdales, and an auto loan w/ so many 30 day lates that it was sickening! I added Am/Ex gold (authorized user...and it reported after 1 month!), Cheveron CB, Am/Ex Optima Secured, Providian, and Associates secured. I'm paying on Target and I haven't began to deal w/ Wards yet. My student loans have been consolidated to 1 but the previous (3) are showing as paid collections w/ zero balance! I paid the auto loan off but it's showing as a paid charge off! I paid the old cell phone to a collection agency but I haven't seen an update yet. The checks I'm in the process of disputing. I guess your right C&C........all I really need to do is finish cleaning up all the negative stuff and work on what I already have. Thus, get rid of Associates, Am/Ex Optima, and Cap1. I guess I can pay off Am/Ex and Associates and get my money back ($500). My money from Cap1 is on it's way (supposedly) so that's another $200. Then use that money to pay off Providian ($200) and not use (I should keep and close in 1 year). The rest of the money I'll use to pay off Citibank. Does this sound like a good plan? Any comments? I'm seriously thinking about after hearing the status of my judgments to just turn everything over to Junum and let them deal with it!
